cl pushing back. tech companies work to protect themselves against government spying and now accusations of n.s.a. snooping. >> millions of americans set to lose aid as a result of federal budget cups. a find in the war of drugs. authorities shut down a tunnel between the u.s. and mexico >> a deadly storm system creating problems across the country as it dumps a foot of rain in some parts leading to severe flooding.

. welcome to al jazeera america. there are new revelations about just how far the national security agency has gone to spy on internet users. revelations that have reportedly led twitter to set up new types of enciption to protect messages from snoops, something google spent millions doing. facebook is trying to stay a step ahead. now the senate intelligence committee is set to tighten the rules. >> these are the slides leaked by whistleblower edward snowden in june. as long as the national security agency or the federal bureau of investigation are 51% sure that the user is foreign, their emails, audio and video chats, photographs and documents are all theirs for the searching. this >> carefully worded denials followed from the companies, arguing that they give specific information to the u.s.

government as legally required on a case-by-case basis. these assurances have been left irrelevant with the news and release of a new slide showing that the n.s.a. bypassed this system, gaining entry to yahoo and google's data centres by breaking into their fibre optic cables. u.s. citizens no longer receive protections as all the information is considered foreign. >> the real concern is the government uses the tapping of overseas cablings as a back door. >> one thing is clear - any data protections that exist are only for u.s. citizens. >> if you are a non-american outside the united states, basically they have a free pass to do what they like. >> the white house derives that authority from executive order 12333 which places no restribzs on the ability of intel -- restrictions on intelligence

agencies to monitor noncitizens, and a ruling in 1990 finding search and seizure is not applicable to foreigners overseas. those who are not u.s. citizens can only receive protection from their own governments. edward snowden reveals that far from safe guarding citizens' data, some governments are helping the n.s.a. >> it may be foreign governments were willing to comply and assist u.s. intelligence agencies when their own citizens were in the dark. >> the question is whether there'll be pressure from the streets to push politicians in europe and elsewhere to take action against the global surveillance programs of the united states. >> the n.s.a. released a statement saying it was focused on foreign intelligence collection, not domestic, and it was not true that it collects vast quantities of americans data. >> congressional bnct cuts

that -- budget cuts that begin friday are expected to take food off the table of millions, snap will be slashed by 5 billion, affecting 47 million who receive food stamp benefits, because con grose is letting a boost to food stamps expire. here is how the cuts will affect the average family. one in seven families will have to cut back on food they buy. a family of four receiving the maximum allotment sees benefits cut by $36. the cuts which affect people not on food stamps. according to financial analysts every dollar spent on food stamps generates $1.73 in economic growth. these cuts spell bad news for food banks across the country, most of which supplement families who receive little to know foodbank supplements.

food brangs in new orleans -- food bangs in the new orleans are bracing for the worst. >> monshelle and her son need help from snap, even though she has a job in local gost. >> between rent, light bills, water bills, everything - nursery bills - i just couldn't afford to have food in the house. >> monshelle receives $364 a month in food stamps and is grateful for that. like 47 million others she is about to face life with less help putting bread on the table. >> people are going to go hungry. >> natalie, runs second harvest of new orleans, and serves meals to 260,000 at risk of going hungry in south louisiana. >> we are concerned about the reductions going in effect. the effect in the state of

louisiana would be like if second harvest stopped distribilitying food -- distribilitying food. we are going to lose 41 million meals. >> the cuts mean a family of four will receive $40 less per month. in this economy that could mean the difference between eating and going hungry. >> second harvest food bang say they are seeing a new face of hunger - workers who have jobs but are not earning enough. they have jobs but are living pay check to paycheck. >> gail was in need of snap, and runs a food panty in partner -- permanentry in partnership with second harvest. >> i remember being divorced and raising my boys by myself. i went to apply for food stamps i was turned down. i was working. i had a decent job working for the federal government. but i was among the working

poor. >> now the word is getting out about the cuts in snap, customers are looking for more help. monshelle says she'll have to cut back somewhere, but not on nutrition for her son. >> he loves, like, his bananas and apple, straw gris and grapes. if i have to -- strawberries and grapes. even if i have to catch the sales. >> second harvest is used to helping people through the end of the month gap. with the new cuts the gap will get wider. and the cuts could just be the beginning. both the house and senate are debating two bills that could slash another 43.5 billion from snap benefits over the next 10 years. >> another tunnel under the u.s. mexico border holding tonnes of illegal drugs has been shut down. the tunnel is described as one of the most sophisticated to be discovered.

authorities seized tonnes of drugs and three suspects are in custody. tom ackerman has more. >> the recently completed tunnel was wired for power and included electronic rail tracks. inside police found more than eight tonnes of marijuana, and almost 150 kilos of cocaine. authorities said the tunnel was discovered before it could be used to ship contraband. >> the passage way zyg zags for a third of a mile. under the border at a depth of 35 feet on average. >> the passage way stretched from a warehouse near tijuana's main airport to an industrial head office park next to a u.s. law enforcement checkpoint. discoveries of tunnels like this have become common - more than 70 in the past five years, and they are getting more advanced. one was equipped with a lift on the mexican side. underground routes are an

efficient way of transporting marijuana, especially during the autumn marijuana harvest. this tunnel is similar to two others, intercepted two years ago - allegedly built by the sinaloa cartel. a u.s. prosecutor put the syndicate on notice. >> if you continue to build and attempt to use these tunnels, we are determined to make this a big waste of your dirty money. >> officials say the cartel's investment of millions in the tunnels was a measure of the crime syndicate's desperation, but also an indication that the u.s. drug market is a rich source of revenue for them. . more than 75 under ground passages have been discovered under the u.s.-mexican border to smuggle marijuana largely. >> a federal appeals court reinstated most of the abortion restrictions in texas. the decision from the fifth

circuit court of appeal came after a lower court removed the restrictions, the federal attorney-general's office pushed. lawyers for planned parenthood argue that the regulations don't help women and would shut a third of abortion clinics in tep as. >> heavy rains, creeks and rivers near austin caused flash floods. more than a foot of rain fell across texas. many people were rescued from austin. there's reports of wind damage, downed powerlines and thousands left without electricity. . on thursday we saw a lot of flooding in texas and severe whether across the mississippi valley, and ohio river valley. on friday this is what it looks like. all the weather will make its way to the east coast. rain from new york to georgia will be a problem.

by the time we get to friday afternoon and saturday morning things will have cleared out. i want to take you to the north-west. we are seeing showers pushing through, but light at times, unfortunately for seattle we'll see deterioration of weather. as you go towards saturday rain will come into play. temperatures of 51, a break in the weather on monday. it comes back on tuesday. down here towards the south-west things are looking nice. we have snow up here towards the higher elevations in colorado, utah and idaho. and even into wyoming. the ski areas are enjoying that. that is packing their base for the start of the season. as we go down towards los angeles, temperatures will fluk ute down to 76. things are nice all the way through the beginning of next week. now, i did tell you about the flooding we saw across texas. the rain has finally moved out. in some locations we saw nine

inches of rain in parts of houston, dallas and austin. good conditions are in play. dallas high temperatures. no rain until we get to tuesday with a temperature of 74. federal investigators say a lightening strike may have caused an oil pipeline to burst in north dakota spilling 20,000 barrels of lawyer. it's part of a report issued on the 29 september rupture. investigators in north dakota thought corrosion may have been the cause. upgrades have been ordered before operations can resume. the owner agreed to install leak protectors and conduct aerial patrols of the pipeline. >> the supreme court of virmginnia ruled virginia tech university was not at fault in failing to warn students of the 2007 campus shooting.

32 were killed when a gunman opened fire in a residence call and classroom. it ruled virginia tech could not have known students were in harm, meaning the families of the victims will not be paid by virginia tech. >> what was behind the motive for an attack by israeli on syria? >> changes to new york city's controversial stop and frisk practice by police officers being put on homed. why an appeals court overruled a judges decision, and why she was pulled from the case.

u.s. officials say israeli war planes attacked a syrian military base. the target is in the syrian port city of latakia. we have this report from jerusalem. >> the israeli army is not

confirming the report. it's not unusual. there have been reports of israeli air strikes. in jan there was a reported strike on a syrian convoy carrying missiles to hezbollah. israel didn't comment saying they were not saying anything, and later reports that israel tarted a missile storage facility close to the province of latakia. israel not commenting. we know israel takes the threat of hezbollah seriously, and said if there is is threat to the israeli state they'll take action, so therefore people here are saying it's possible that israel could have carried out the airtrike. the official line from the israeli army is no comment. >> syria met a deadline to destroy equipment used to make chemical weapons. international inspectors confirmed the destruction of all

such equipment. the next deadline is november 15th, when a detailed plan to remove 1,000 tonnes of chemical weapons must be agreed to. the country is expected to destroy its stockpile by next summer. >> members of congress received a briefing on thursday. u.s. ambassador to syria robert ford sold the senate intelligence committee he sees no military solution. >> the conflict in syria is a grinding war of retrigs, the regime is suffering mann power shortages and brought in foreign fighters from hezbollah, from the iran revolutionary corp and iraqi shia militia men. the moderate army is fighting on two fronts - against the regime, and against militants, extremists linked to al qaeda in iraq. >> ford defended the obama

administration's role. he says the u.s. provided military support to moderate allies, and the best course of action would be a peace agreement. >> iraqi prime minister nouri al-maliki will visit the white house on friday, part of his first trip to washington in two years. on thursday he addressed a packed auditor youm. he said his country needs help to stop the growing violence. patty culhane has more. >> who is to blame for the carnage seen daily on the streets of iraq? prime minister nouri al-maliki's message to the u.s. - this is the work of america's own arch enemy al qaeda, telling the u.s. media, public forums and u.s. leaders he needs their help to stop this. the group's resurgens in iraq is because of a vacuum left by the arab springs, the civil war in

syria. some believe he shares some of the blame for consolidating the power, shutting up the sunni community, arguing he's creating conditions for another civil war. the prime minister told the conference he has done nothing wrong. >> as long i use the perog tifs in a contit usual way there shouldn't be a problem. if i ask in an unconstitutional way tell me when and how. >> at the white house promise is the president will raise concerns about now maliki governs. but they won't block the sale of f-16 jets, helicopters or vehicles. >> we believe denying assistance is contrary to our interest. >> senior officials say they may help by sharing intelligence. analysts don't expect a huge shift. >> the status of forces doesn't provide for u.s. personal, trainers or advisors, the

equipment we sold him is in the pipe line. i don't think we'll get more equipment. he probably wants more intelligence cooperation. there may be moves to provide contractors to help him. >> the u.s. budgeted 200 million to improve the security situation in iraq. in the past, in exchange for aid and wep jornings the u.s. -- weapons, the u.s. demanded iraq stop using its air space to transport weapons to syria. now they are focussed on iraq. the prime minister will ask barack obama what he is going to do to help stop it, and hope he has an answer. >> china's top security officials say they have identified the group responsible for a deadly car explosion in tina men square. the islamic east turkishize lal movement carried out the attack.

five from killed and 38 injured when an suv rammed through crowds. police say it was a planned terror attack. knives, gasso lean and religious items were found in the vehicle. >> president obama is encouraging foreign companies to set up shop in the u.s. he talked to business and government leaders from around the world at a conference in washington, aimed at attracting foreign investment. >> you should find out why there's no substitute for those proud words - made in america. here is three more words - select usa. when you do you'll find some of the world's best workers, innovative entrepreneurs - a government and president who is committed to helping you create more good jobs. >> the white house is calling the select usa initiative the first federal effort to attract job-creating foreign investment to the united states. it's the first time the u.s. made foreign investment a

priority over the promotion of foreign exports. >> there's a new senator in washington. corey booker officially became a u.s. senator. vice president joe biden swore in the new jersey democrat. >> my seat has a latino and a black representing them. it's incredible. new jersey is a special place. as i travelled around the state no one seemed to care that much about the colour of my skin. what they wanted to know was what i was going to do to help with the issues of our state. >> booker is one of two african american u.s. senator. the other is republican tim scott of south carolina. booker and his mother met with senate majority leader harry reid and later with president obama. he's filling the seat of frank latinberg who died last summer. >> a federal appeals court is blocking a ruling to change the stop and frisk practice. in august a judge ruled the

controversial police tack take unfairly targeted blacks and his panics. on thursday a court put a hold on that ruling. the judge has been removed from the case. police commissioner ray kelly defended the ruling and practice sitting reduced crime rates in mork -- citing reduced crime rates in new york city. >> lowest number of murders, the lowest it's been since october 31st in the 1940s, perhaps. that's how safe the city is. our tactics and strategies, i think have worked and continue to work. >> the appeal process will continue through next spring. new york city elects a new mayor on tuesday, and blass r the employment -- bill de blasio, the democratic front runner

built his campaign around stop and frisk. >> the faa issues new rules with electronic devices - what you can and can't do. >> a legal victory for a hot sauce company caught up in a battle with neighbours over its facility.

some good news for tech-savvy travellers. the federal aviation administration says airline passengers will be able to use most electronic devices throughout flights, including takeoffs and landed. travellers can listen to music on the ipod, play games, but will not be able to make phone calls. a safety review will take place before the rules take plans of breathed a sigh of relief. a judge ruled against a shutdown after residents claimed the fumes from the plant caused headaches and sore throats.

the owner says he's installed filters and other measures toees the emissions. >> doctors in florida have completed a nerve graph. the surgery may open doors for people suffering from spinal cord injuries. we have this report. >> it was supposed to be an enjoyable day of boating in the bay. the boat's propeller sliced daniel press's upper leg. when the 26-year-old arrived at the hospital doctors were more worried been saving her life than her head. >> we weren't specting the injury to be so devastating and severe. she was coming here in shock. she was in the brink of pretty much collapse. >> as a police chief press's father found himself in the scenario countless times. it didn't prepare him for what he saw. >> seeing your daughter in that state - i have spent my entire

life, my career helping families through this type of thing. never had to look at my own. so it was devastating. once press was stablilized doctors saw an opportunity to restore movement to her battered leg. the boat propeller severed the sciatic nerve, which controls movement and feeling in the leg. thee told her they wanted her to be the first person in the world to under go the nerve graph. >> it was a great feeling. >> the plan was to take the standard approach of using press's nerves to repair her sye attic nerve. it would be difficult to find donor nerves to repair that large of an area. that's where the ground breaking surgery came in. we took cells that were isolated from her nerve, grown and cultured and put back into a

nerve to give her more nerve material. >> it's been two weeks since press underwent the surgery. doctors say recovering will be measured in years, with a lot of physiotherapy ahead. >> it's a long way from where the nerve was insured, to get to the foot. it's probably about two feet. the nerves grow at an inch a month. this repair strategy will give her sensation back in the leg, and will hopefully give her motor recovering. >> it's too soon to determine how much the leg will recover, she remains grateful and determined. >> i take every day as a gift, and get through it as best i can. >> press is a pioneer in nerve graph surgery. doctors hope it will be a break through in spinal injury and hope to use it to cure

paralysis. . that will do it for al jazeera america. have a good evening. what is next after an undercover sting reveals the corruption. our team broke the story, and it. ♪ >> the al jazeera exclusive investigation broke on an fbi string involving ron calderon, the california state senator from a political family wieldi